2002 Revisited: Part I, The Rookies

nordby1 · Dec 30, 2002

There is a nice article posted on the wusa.com site that features Danielle Slaton and her being selected #1 in the 2002 WUSA Global Draft:

2002 Revisited: Part I, The Rookies

Slaton, who was coming off an NCAA championship and an extended tour with the U.S. national team, arrived early in the morning the day before the draft and was one of the few who didn’t know she was certain to be the top pick. After the Courage called her name, Slaton said she was “shocked.” Had she been there earlier, she would have known that seven coaches had long ago written her off as unavailable.
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nordby1 · Jan 3, 2003

I think that Slaton might have been the only person who didn't know that she was going to be drafted #1. I don't recall any discussion about the Courage even seriously considering anyone else.

AndyMead · Jan 3, 2003

On the face of things we "should" have been interested in Abby Wambach. Of course the whole Birgit Prinz thing was the worst kept secret of the century. If we weren't about to sign Birgit, then we might have taken Abby instead. Of course our defense would still have been in shambles, but after 2001 we needed help all over the field. The fact that we added top players in defense and offense, and the defender allowed TR to move back into the midfield was an incredible set of events.

nordby1 · Jan 3, 2003

Originally posted by AndyMead
On the face of things we "should" have been interested in Abby Wambach. Of course the whole Birgit Prinz thing was the worst kept secret of the century. If we weren't about to sign Birgit, then we might have taken Abby instead.
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I take it then that the "official" announcement about Prinz joining the Courage wasn't made until after the draft. I'll go back and check, but I recall first reading in the Norwegian media about Carolina's interest in Prinz as far back as November 2001.

nordby1 · Jan 4, 2003

Norwegian Article Discussing Courage Interest in Prinz

I was able to find the article that was posted at the "toppserien.com" site back at the end of November 2001. Sorry that I don't have an English translation readily available, but even without understanding Norwegian you can see that the article is discussing Hege Riise, Birgit Prinz and the Carolina Courage.

Here's the link for anyone who is interested:

Kan få Prinz på laget